It was a sunny evening on Leith's Shore area. After a long winter, temperatures had risen and although it wasn't quite 'taps aff', vitamin D starved Leithers were making the most of it.

This restaurant’s sister bar Teuchters Landing has an enviable pontoon come beer garden. It’s actually the former waiting room for the Leith to Aberdeen steamboat ferry and thus seemed an appropriate place for my Aberdonian friend and I to have a drink before heading next door.

A room in Leith has a very specific focus on seafood and game. If like me, you spend your first 30 mins in any restaurant agonising over the menu and paralysed by indecision, this could be the perfect place for you. Large seafood and game platters are available that offer a little bit of everything on the menu (for £45), or, if you can't convince anyone to share, the deli plates also provide a convenient 'taster' at a more palatable £12.50.

On this occasion, however, I was unusually decisive, as I couldn't see past the pan-fried Shetland scallops with smoked haddock and Buckie crab risotto. Indeed, seafood seemed the appropriate choice on this sunny evening by the Forth, and my friend chose the smoked hake fillet with Arran mustard mash, a bacon tuille and cider cream sauce. The intriguing black pudding Scotch egg and seared hare fillet would have to wait for another time. The food tasted as beautiful as it looked; perfectly cooked, fresh and delicious. The portions were generous, but we were still determined to try dessert, opting for a creamy and zesty lemon posset with vanilla sponge and a rich and complex chocolate and orange pot.

As well as a great variety of dishes at different price levels, there is an extensive drinks menu, making it the perfect place for a leisurely meal. The wine list conveniently suggests pairings but there is also a selection of beers on tap, in bottles and cans, cocktails and soft drinks, as well as several carefully selected gins and whiskies, which can be sampled as flights - sometimes indecision is the best decision! (D. Spencer)

Reader Reviews / Comments

There are currently no reader reviews. Be the first to review by clicking below!